Who Do You Think You Are - Gary Lineker 21st Aug

[Margaret in Burton]

Well I really enjoyed that. I will investigate whether OH's ancestors lived in the same streets as James Pratt. They certainly had the same occupation.

[ElizabethHerts]

I found this interesting and was pleased when Gary started to take it more seriously as I had been shouting at him.

After she was widowed, OH's great-grandmother, Emily Newton, was a matron at Christ's Hospital. She is living there on the 1901 and 1911 censuses.

http://search.ancestry.co.uk/cgi-bin...871792&recoff=

http://search.ancestry.co.uk/cgi-bin...&rhSource=7814

I was very interested to hear there was an archives at the school. I tried contacting them once for details of her time there but I got no reply. I shall have to try again.

[kiterunner]

Episode synopsis:

Gary Lineker lives in East London now, but he was born in Leicester in 1960, the eldest son of market stall trader. His younger brother's name is Wayne. Gary's grandparents were William Harold Lineker, known as Harold, and Alice Kate Hoare. Harold's father George Albert Lineker started the market trader business called G A Lineker and Sons.

Gary met genealogist Anthony Adolph, who had drawn up his family tree including some more Linekers William Henry Lineker and Samuel Lineker. He had also traced Alice Hoare's line. Her father was Frederick Hoare. His mother was Kate Billingham. Her father was James Billingham and his father was Thomas Billingham jr, a law writer, born in Beckenham, Kent, in 1789, and who died in Sep 1849 at St Mary Newington, Surrey / London.

Gary's 4xg-grandfather was James Pratt born in Hinckley, Leicestershire. The Criminal Register showed that he was tried for larceny in 1848 and sentenced to 6 months in prison.


Gary went to Leicester to find out more about James Pratt. He went to Leicestershire Record Office to look at the court records for 1848, which showed that James Pratt of Hinckley, labourer, pled guilty to stealing "six live tame fowls called hens". A report in the Leicestershire Mercury said that James Pratt was a framework knitter. Gary visited Leicester Prison where James served his sentence. He met a professor of criminology who showed him James's criminal record from 1868 which listed previous offences including 1846 - malicious trespass, 1848 - stealing six hens, 1857 and 1860 - night poaching. In 1868 he was again convicted of night poaching. The record showed that James's only education was Sunday school, and that he made his mark rather than sign his name. The Leicester Journal from 1871 showed James once again convicted of poaching rabbits.

Gary visited Hinckley and met the criminologist again at St Mary's Church, where James Pratt married Maria Leeson on the 24th Dec 1843. The couple were aged 24 and 22 respectively, and were both stocking makers. Gary was shown a notice of a meeting held in Hinckley in 1842 to discuss the economic problems of stocking makers caused by the economic depression of the time. Gary was also shown birth and death certificates for James and Maria's first two children, Ann born Jan 1844 and died in 1845 of consumption, and Elizabeth who died in 1849 of croup. There were 8 more children who survived to adulthood, including Alice, the grandmother of Gary's grandmother Alice. James Pratt died in 1901 age 83 and was buried in Hinckley.



Gary then looked at the 1841 census entry for Thomas Billingham, age 50, his wife Sarah, 40, and their six children. Thomas's occupation was shown as stationer.

Gary visited Stationers' Hall in London, the home of the Worshipful Company of Stationers. He was shown Thomas Billingham's apprenticeship indentures, which stated that Thomas, the son of Thomas Billingham sr, a gardener of Beckenham, Kent, was apprenticed in 1804 at the age of 14 to William Witherby, a legal stationer. The apprenticeship was paid for by Christ's Hospital School.

Gary visited the Guildhall Archives to see the records of Christ's Hospital, and saw Thomas Billingham's school application from 1798 when he was 8 years old. Thomas sr had stated that he was married with two children but did not have much income. The school was paid by Thomas sr's employer, Edward King, lawyer and author. The school records showed that Thomas jr ws found to have "an opacity in one eye".

Gary visited Christ's Hospital in its current location at Horsham, West Sussex. He met their museum curator who showed him Edward King's obituary from the Gentleman's Magazine of 1807, which stated that Edward had no children of his own. An extract from Edward King's cash book showed that he sent money to Tom Billingham at school.

Gary went to see the Witherby company's new factory in Tottenham and was shown a document written out by Thomas Billingham.

[kiterunner]

Here is some unseen footage:
http://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazi.../footage/14497

I was hoping for some stuff about framework knitters, maybe the museum in Ruddington. I did feel that they were struggling to find enough relevant information to fill the episode and that it was padded out somewhat.

[anne fraser]

I agree about the padding all the filming in the match of the day make up department did not add much. I did not really like the format of showing him his family tree straight away. I can only conclude his recent ancestors were fairly dull.

[JBee]

Is it me but I get annoyed when I see them handling the documents roughly, without book rests or white gloves on? Did I see Gary lick his fingers when looking through the court records?

I went to one archives and got into trouble for not using a book rest - it was my first visit and I didn't know what to do.

[Shona]

Originally Posted by JBee

Is it me but I get annoyed when I see them handling the documents roughly, without book rests or white gloves on? Did I see Gary lick his fingers when looking through the court records?

I went to one archives and got into trouble for not using a book rest - it was my first visit and I didn't know what to do.

Even my OH recoiled with horror when Gaz licked his fingers to leaf through the court records.

Gaz may never have been given a red card in his footie career, but he should have been given one for that.

[Olde Crone]

I really did not enjoy this episode of "Much Ado About Nothing". I found his childish giggling extremely irritating and the whole programme lacked any interest for me. As Anne says, it had the air of a struggle to find anything remotely interesting or remarkable.

OC

[Shona]

Originally Posted by kiterunner

Here is some unseen footage:
http://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazi.../footage/14497

That unseen footage should have remained unseen. Totally pointless.

[Shona]

This is more like it. Enjoyed reading this account from Leicester Uni about the hardships faced by Hinkley's framework knitters.

http://www.le.ac.uk/lahs/downloads/H...olumeLIV-6.pdf

Some more about framework knitters.

http://www.leicestershirevillages.co...sequences.html